In the era of the College Football Playoff, one loss won’t ruin your season.

But go on a bad run and you’re done.

With that in mind, we’re examining the most challenging stretches of games for all 14 teams in the SEC.

Next up in our series is Tennessee.

Toughest stretch: October

Tennessee has won the offseason, preseason and even the month of September.

Remember last year when the Vols started 4-0, stopping a decade-long losing streak to rival Florida? They even followed it up with a last-second win at Georgia, leading many to believe that the program was back.

But then came losses to Texas A&M, Alabama and South Carolina. The lesson being that championships -- even so-called championships of life -- are won during the dog days of the season.

This year, getting through October has to be the key.

Whether Butch Jones has his team 5-0 or 3-2, he needs come out of the bye week ready to play. Otherwise, Jones could be moving from the hot seat to the unemployment line in a hurry.

He can’t lose to South Carolina again. Not after last year's debacle in which the woefully undermanned Gamecocks knocked off Tennessee in South Carolina. Even though the Gamecocks will have a more mature Jake Bentley at quarterback and Skai Moore back at linebacker, the Vols should still have the edge in talent and the benefit of having the game at home.

Next comes what could be the toughest game all season: at Alabama. Though beating the likely preseason No. 1 team and reigning SEC champs might not be in the cards, Jones better find a way to make it a close game to avoid the same kind of letdown that happened last season when the wheels came off after a 39-point loss to the Tide at home.

After that, it’s the proverbial trap game. Win or lose in Tuscaloosa, Tennessee will have to get its mind right before traveling to Kentucky. The Vols have won five in a row in the series, but the Wildcats appear to be heading in the right direction after reaching a bowl for the first time during Mark Stoops' tenure.

It won’t be easy to go at least 2-1 during that three-game stretch, but it might be what Jones must do to keep his job even if Joshua Dobbs, Alvin Kamara, Derek Barnett and Cam Sutton are all gone.